Following the model of ImpeachDonaldTrumpNow.org, Cambridge has urged impeachment for violation of the domestic and foreign emoluments clauses which forbid any appearance of financial interests benefitting from state, federal, or foreign governments. Trump has been blatantly violating these sections of the U.S. Constitution since day one as governments give him loans, permits, tax breaks, rent, etc. This is an unprecedented sort of corruption. But it's just scratching the surface of the indisputable outrages, if we include offenses that Trump's predecessors also committed at least in a lesser degree.
As of a 2015 disclosure to the Federal Elections Commission, Trump owns stock in the maker of the missiles he sent into Syria, Raytheon, as well as numerous other weapons makers, Canadian tar sands, etc.
Trump has continued, escalated, and threatened numerous illegal and immoral wars. That he may be personally profiting from them just adds to the crime.
Trump has unconstitutionally discriminated against refugees, been stopped by the judiciary, and immediately done it again.
Trump has pushed policies that will aggravate climate change, a crime against humanity that can be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court even against a non-member. On December 6, 2009, Trump signed a public letter to President Obama urging action to protect the earth from climate change. "If we fail to act now," the letter read, "it is scientifically irrefutable that there will be catastrophic and irreversible consequences for humanity and our planet."
Pre-presidency but still available grounds for impeachment, Trump violated, according to the list in Alan Lichtman's book on Trump impeachment, the Fair Housing Act, New York charity law, tax laws, the Cuban embargo, casino regulations, the RICO statute, laws against employing undocumented immigrants, and of course laws against sexual assault.
Of course there is one charge against Trump that has not been proven, risks confrontation with a nuclear armed government, and needlessly adds a xenophobic excuse to the dozens of solid reasons that last year's U.S. election was illegitimate. So of course this is the one everybody wants to focus on: blaming Russia for exposing the Democratic Party's slanting of its own primary against its strongest candidate. Just remember that the people choosing this approach are the same people who nominated the only candidate who could have lost to Donald Trump.
And remember that, while we need to remove the most egregious politicians from the highest offices, we also need to reform the whole system they are part of. At World Beyond War dot org you can sign up to help with campaigns on divestment from weapons makers, closing military bases, and supporting global justice -- or propose something new.
You can also help us develop the next edition of our book A Global Security System: An Alternative to War which presents a vision of non-violent government and conflict resolution without war. You can also help us get such resources into schools. And you can work to get military tests and recruiters out of schools and to let parents opt out of sending their kids information to recruiters.
A few other things you may want to plan to take part in:
April 22nd is a march for science. I confess to having mixed feelings about this one. I'm delighted to see a new group of people beginning to act a little bit like responsible citizens. But science is used for good and ill. It's like a march for wrenches. Sure, it's great to reject the view that wrenches are a Chinese fraud. But if someone uses a wrench to hit you in the head, how good will that be? The U.S. government's biggest investments in science are through the military. Love of science leads to mad professors at Harvard trying to solve climate change through geo-engineering, and to space imperialism -- dreams of finding other planets to destroy.
April 29th is the climate march. We pushed hard and got them to include peace in their agenda. And we will have a peace contingent and rally there in Washington, as others will at local events that day.
June 16-18 is the UNAC conference in Richmond, Va.
And World Beyond War will have big conferences in August in Minneapolis and October in Washington, DC. Details on the website.
(Article changed on April 14, 2017 at 14:02)
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